~*ONC shortlist*~ It's up to a climbing enthusiast, and the local jaded doctor to find out what's going on when a mysterious hole appears in their town's park at the same time that a strange new illness starts ravaging the community. *ONC 2023 From the ONC Prompts: 38) A seemingly bottomless pit was found, for which the depth can't be determined. Over time, scores of people began using it to illegally dump trash. Many have jumped believing that they'll find life's answers within it. Today, we learn the truth about the hole. 54) As townspeople are overcome with a deadly sickness, it's up to you, the only one not afflicted, to find the cause and cure. 69) I had a marvelous time ruining everything - Taylor Swift.

|𝟏𝐱 𝐅𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐄𝐃/𝐎𝐍𝐂 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟑 𝐀𝐌𝐁𝐀𝐒𝐒𝐀𝐃𝐎𝐑 𝐏𝐈𝐂𝐊𝐒| When the apocalypse arrives 𝐊𝐀𝐍𝐄 is ready to accept death after living a cursed life. But fate has other plans for him. Whisked away by a mysterious taxi driver with a silver tongue, Kane finds himself caught up in the world of faes, vampires, werewolves and even dragons! What was supposed to be a quest to get answers regarding his family's elusive past transforms into a journey to make him into a warrior capable of saving his dying world. Enter 𝐓𝐄𝐌𝐏𝐄𝐒𝐓. Blessed by the gods and a Lady of the Lake, her tongue is as sharp as the blade she wields. She has no love for Earth and could care less about its demise. But she too has a troubled past that she wants to rectify. If there's any hope at getting what she wants, she needs to whip Kane into shape as efficiently as possible. Kane is cursed. Tempest is blessed. Together they have the power to silence the banshee's world ending scream before it causes Earth's annihilation. 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐬: 𝐎𝐧𝐠𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐫𝐞: 𝐅𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐬𝐲 & 𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐝: 𝟎𝟐/𝟎𝟑/𝟐𝟑 𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐝: 𝐍/𝐀 𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: 𝟏𝟔+ 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐠𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐦𝐮𝐭 & 𝐯𝐢𝐨𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫: @𝐗𝐚𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐡

ONC 2023 Shortlister, An Ambys 2024 Favourite (Fright) & Fright Pride Month Feature 2025. *** Accomplished writer Ríone Embers' life takes a turn when she learns from the solicitor that her dead mother has left her their childhood home in Loutham. It unearths memories buried deep in her past, threatening to unravel the life she has made since leaving that place. Seeking the advice of her therapist, she decides to confront the demons of her past. Nestled by the ocean, Loutham is a quiet town with no discerning feature that might make it different from any other American small town. It's forgettable, a mere pointer on a map. Yet it has a chilling secret hidden in the very waters by which it is situated. And it is calling Ríone to come back home. *** Started: 1/02/2023 Ended: 15/04/2023 Cover Credits: @MoranaInDesign (a total magician!)

| 𝟏𝟐𝐱 𝐅𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐝 | An ex-gamer enters a virtual reality ruled by a rebel AI in order to rescue her younger sister and shut down the death game. * * * Eight years ago, Mori Fukutomi held the rank of number two player in the tactical hero shooter game SniperX. But fate and her parents had other plans and Mori now works as an accountant with her dreams of being a pro gamer long since buried. Games like SniperX are old relics in the face of virtual reality tech and their latest gem, Facing Fear--a simulation designed to analyze the psyche of its players and adapt itself accordingly, creating a safe terrain for players to take risks and discover themselves. Until FEAR, the AI governing the virtual world of Valor, decides the thing humanity fears most is death. Despite the rising death toll and Facing Fear closing its doors, when Mori discovers her sister Shiori is trapped in the game, she does the unthinkable. She goes in after her. But she'll soon discover they're not the only ones desperate to make it out alive and there are worse things in Valor than the monsters. There's more to FEAR than fear itself. ✧ 𝐅𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐲 ✧ 𝐅𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 ✧ 𝐆𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 ✧ ─────────────────────────────────── Completed: 4-23-2023 Word Count: 35,000 - 40,000

Legend speaks of a man with crows in his hair and stitches in his lips who will teach you his greatest trades. Some call him a monster. Most call him the Needle-Mouthed Man. But only the shadows know his true name, and they call him Master. As one of the dead, Minseo Park is a creature of the night, doomed to eternal darkness. However, refusing to accept his fate, Minseo turns to the shadows to give himself a second chance at life---all to get his sister out of the whorehouse where he himself died. Desperate, Minseo seeks out the Needle-Mouthed Man for guidance. But the Needle-Mouthed Man brings company: his protégé Nikolas, who both makes Minseo's blood boil and sets his heart aflame. In order to find his murderer and save his sister, Minseo must walk the balance between life and death and decide whether to embrace his inner darkness---or to let it consume him. Because the shadows are hungry, and the only food they want is revenge. [ cover and banners by inmyxikey ]